


next time, don't insult my personal heater!

by and_hera



Series: fire lord zuko is doing his best, guys [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Gen, POV Outsider, Post-Canon, Unreliable Narrator, tagged it gen because the romance isn't super important
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:33:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25493926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/and_hera/pseuds/and_hera
Summary: Rumors have gone around about the new Fire Lord, because if there’s any place that spreads rumors faster than a royal palace, Tazi has yet to find it. Zuko is barely seventeen, which isn’t so much of a rumor as it is a harsh reminder. Also it explains most of the other rumors: apparently, Liza who tends to the grounds found him sleeping next to the turtleduck pond at eleven in the morning a few days ago. Lee from the kitchens caught him sneaking out of a window.or, various strangers continue to be baffled by the new Fire Lord and his friends.
Relationships: Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Katara & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong & Zuko, but it's pretty lowkey - Relationship
Series: fire lord zuko is doing his best, guys [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1846534
Comments: 34
Kudos: 1415





	next time, don't insult my personal heater!

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote another one guys. i Swear i'm going to write a serious fic at some point but i'm just having too much fun here  
> jsyk this is now a series but there's no need to read the first one in order to read this one! however you totally should it's hilarious  
> okay so like i know sozin invented homophobia but i decided that fuck that, there is no homophobia just in these fics because I Don't Like It. i never read the comics so it isn't real <3 no one gives a flying fuck about someone's sexuality or gender in MY avatar the last airbender!  
> okay i hope you enjoy! kudos and comments are my favorite they mean the world to me <3 and come talk to me on twitter @lcvelaces!

There’s a girl in Fire Lord Zuko’s room.

There’s a girl in Fire Lord Zuko’s room, which is honestly a bit of a surprise to Koza for several reasons. The first being the fact that the Fire Lord doesn’t have many friends, the second being that the Fire Lord is _supposed_ to be in a meeting right now, and the third being that Koza honestly didn’t think that the Fire Lord swung that way. Not that they would ever say that out loud.

The girl looks sweet, and she’s talking Fire Lord Zuko’s ear off, from what Koza can see. She’s fairly tall, her long brown hair down with two loops at the front attaching to her half ponytail. She’s in blue clothes, and Koza thinks they look something similar to Ambassador Sokka from the Water Tribe’s outfits, but maybe a bit more tasteful. She’s smiling. Fire Lord Zuko… is also smiling?

Koza didn’t know that the boy was capable of a face that wasn’t incredibly sleep deprived or furious with some general or other who defended Ozai to his face. 

“And Sokka is being… well, Sokka,” the girl says brightly, and Zuko rolls his eyes. “But things are going well! Actually, Sokka is going to be heading up here pretty soon as the Ambassador again. I’ll miss him, but also, I do work better when he isn’t there to distract me and be obnoxious. Also, I know he’ll have more fun up here with you.”

“Sure, _he’ll_ have fun,” Zuko says sarcastically. “I’ll just end up getting less sleep than I already do.”

The girl’s jaw drops. “Fire Lord Zuko!" she says accusingly, "You did _not_ just make that joke about my brother!”

Koza hated to walk in on the guy while he’s having a good time, but they technically have to get him for that meeting he’s supposed to be present at, so they knock twice on the door and wait. Fire Lord Zuko eventually makes his way to the door, and several strands of his hair have fallen out of his bun. He blinks. “Koza, right?” he says, and Koza almost smiles. Of course the freshly seventeen year old boy knows their name. Kid probably knows everyone in the staff.

“Yes, your majesty,” Koza says, bowing respectfully. “You had a meeting with Councilman Ran set for ten minutes ago, but if you’re… preoccupied, I can tell him as much.”

The girl behind him laughs. “Well, do you think Councilman Ran will be terribly upset if Zuko here is joined by a much cooler waterbending master?”

Koza looks the girl up and down. She can’t be older than fourteen. “I- I’m not entirely sure, miss…”

“Katara.”

“Miss Katara. Is it Master Katara?”

The girl- Katara- laughs again. She seems to be fond of laughing. “Just Katara is fine, really. Now, come on, Zuko, let’s go do business.”

Koza isn’t supposed to smile, but they do anyway. Fire Lord Zuko isn’t a threat, as everyone in the castle is starting to realize. Koza isn’t old yet, but they’re fully grown, and they know that while this boy might be dangerous, he is just a child who is trying to run a nation. “I’ll tell them to set a place for you, Katara.”

“Thanks!” Katara says brightly, and takes off, Fire Lord Zuko in arm. Koza swears they hear Katara say something about Zuko being warm, and that she didn’t know firebenders ran hot. And then they’re gone.

Koza wants to laugh at this predicament, but they’re worried that legally they can’t, so they don’t. They head to the meeting chamber to set a place for Katara.

They are a little vindicated to be proven right, though. Katara _isn’t_ dating Fire Lord Zuko. Which is probably for her own good. 

You know, before Zuko became Fire Lord, the job was less about chatting in the kitchens about which of Zuko’s friends, the heroes of the world, are dating who. It was more about fearing for your life. But honestly, anything can become normal after the war. And it’s not like Koza _prefers_ being terrified.

Koza smiles. No one is going to believe them when they say that the Fire Lord is dating the Water Tribe Ambassador.

Tazi isn’t having the best day. It’s fine, she’ll be fine, but she’s stressed, and Lin is crying on her chest, and she’s _supposed_ to be cleaning Fire Lord Zuko’s room, but she isn’t.

Rumors have gone around about the new Fire Lord, because if there’s any place that spreads rumors faster than a royal palace, Tazi has yet to find it. Zuko is barely seventeen, which isn’t a rumor but a harsh reminder. Also it explains most of the other rumors: apparently, Liza who tends to the grounds found him sleeping next to the turtleduck pond at eleven in the morning a few days ago. Lee from the kitchens caught him sneaking out of a window. Tazi herself hasn’t met him yet, but she has a list of things she knows about him:

-Barely seventeen years old, which means his sleep schedule is probably already fucked on its own and now he’s running a nation (she cleans his room, and more often than not his bed hasn’t been touched all night)

-Likes the turtleducks an unhealthy amount

-Early in his reign, he walked around the palace and handed out dismissal slips to everyone in the palace who supported his father, while his friend (the little one who wears green) followed and banged two pots together in support (?) and it was the most entertainment Tazi has had in years

-Has four (4) friends, the blind one who wears green, the Avatar, the master waterbender, and the boy with the boomerang

And honestly, Tazi likes him a lot more than she ever liked Ozai.

But right now, she’s in a bit of a panic, because no matter how kind Fire Lord Zuko seems, he is _definitely_ going to come back to his room in a few minutes and it’s _not_ clean and Tazi has an eleven month old in a sling on her chest, crying like there’s no tomorrow. It’s just that her sister started a new job today, which meant that she couldn’t watch Lin, and Tazi just hasn’t had the time to find someone to watch him yet.

So, she thought that bringing Lin to work might be okay. Maybe he’d be nice to her for once and not cry.

And, of course, he is crying. And Tazi cannot clean the Agni forsaken room.

A few minutes later, she gives up. Lin isn’t calming down and probably won’t until she gives him her full attention, so she decides to head down to the kitchens and maybe give him a snack. As she opens the door, she runs straight into a… kid?

Oh, shit. That’s _definitely_ the Avatar, isn’t it.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” he says brightly, backing up (into Fire Lord Zuko, oh Agni) and holding up his hands. Hands that have arrow tattoos on them. “I didn’t know you were there.”

Tazi bows her head. “My fault entirely, Avatar Aang.”

“Is that a baby?” Aang asks, and she looks back and forth as if she’ll find somewhere to hide. “I _love_ kids! What’s their name?”

“Aang,” Zuko says, but it isn’t stern. It's more fond than anything. “Leave Tazi alone. She’s just trying to do her job.”

“His name is Lin,” Tazi says anyway, almost honored that the Fire Lord knows her by name. “I apologize, Fire Lord Zuko, I didn’t have a place to leave him today. It won’t happen again, I’m sure-”

Zuko shakes his head. “Don’t worry about it. He’s not causing any harm. And I’m sure someone in the palace would be willing to help you look after him.”

Tazi isn’t taken aback, but it’s something close to it. “Thank you,” she says, and bows her head again. 

“How old is he?” Aang asks, still hung up on Lin. "He's so cute! If I were you, I would never want to leave him at home."

Tazi is suddenly struck with just how _young_ this Avatar is. He can’t be more than thirteen. He’s wearing professional airbender clothes and all that, but nothing can hide that he is a _child._ Tazi hasn’t been a mother for long, but she wants to protect him.

Zuko rolls his eyes. “Aang, we do technically have work to do,” he says. But then he leans down and meets Lin’s eyes, who has miraculously stopped crying. “Be good to your mother,” he says nicely, as if Lin understands what he’s saying. 

Lin lifts a hand and taps Fire Lord Zuko on the nose. Aang laughs, a loud, contagious thing, and Zuko smiles. Tazi thinks that while Aang certainly looks it, Zuko is just a kid too.

And then Zuko stands up and heads into his room, and Aang follows him, already chattering about something else equally as exciting to him.

Tazi decides that if Fire Lord Zuko is able to be kind to her son, he’ll probably be kind to her nation. She heads to the kitchens.

Ambassador Tanagi didn’t know that children were allowed in meetings of this prestige, but there’s a ball of green and curse words hanging off Fire Lord Zuko’s right arm right now, so.

No one dares to bring the kid up. Fire Lord Zuko sits at the head of the table, which is different from Ozai who sat up on his throne, but Tanagi respects it nonetheless. And there is a kid in green with dark hair holding on to his arm and in all respects acting like a cat, sitting close and leaning her head on his shoulder. Tanagi has less respect for this. At one point, the Fire Lord needed something on his right side, so he lifted the kid up, set her down on the left, and carried on speaking as if nothing happened. Honestly, what has the nation come to.

He thinks back to how he got into this situation. He’s been an ambassador for the Fire Nation in the Earth Kingdom for years, and while the job is hard work, he’s always enjoyed it. And to be honest, the fact that Ba Sing Se did nothing during the war but sit behind their walls was totally fine with him. Not like he was ever in danger. And Tanagi would never say it out loud now, but he always thought that, well, perhaps Fire Lord Ozai had some points.

And that’s why he’s not entirely thrilled to be at this particular meeting. With Fire Lord Zuko, Ozai’s disgraced son. Scar on his eye. Child on his arm. Well, Tanagi calls the girl on his arm a child, but really Zuko isn’t that far off from being a child himself. Seventeen as of last week. No one that age should be running a kingdom, especially not after a war. Tanagi will give him that- Fire Lord Zuko has his work cut out for him.

But Zuko is talking a lot about _reparations_ and _apologies_ and that sounds a lot like _weakening the Fire Nation_ , and Tanagi does not like that. No one that age should be running a kingdom, especially not if he’s _soft_.

“Fire Lord Zuko,” he says, “what about _our_ nation?”

Zuko tilts his head. “What do you mean, Ambassador Tanagi?”

Tanagi rolls his eyes. “What I mean is, you’re talking about helping all the other nations and doing things for _them_. What about us? The Fire Nation deserves some help and money too, I think,” he says decisively. “Unless you really don’t care about us at all. I suppose enough time being banished would do that to you.”

There is silence in the room. Tanagi thinks that he probably could have left that last part out.

“Agni and _fucking_ kai,” the kid says, still holding on to Zuko’s arm.

“Toph, that is just not how you swear,” Zuko says, “and please don’t-”

“You come to this meeting,” the kid, Toph says furiously, “and you come _knowing_ we’re trying to make up for what the Fire Nation has done to these other countries for a hundred fuckin’ years, and you have the _audacity_ -”

“Toph,” Zuko says firmly, and she stops, huffing a furious breath. “Ambassador Tanagi, that was uncalled for.”

“I sure as hell would say so,” Toph mutters.

“I don’t appreciate this… _child_ swearing at me,” Tanagi says, his face red. 

“Well, I don’t appreciate you being a fucking asshole,” Toph fires back.

Tanagi’s mouth drops. He hears at least two members of the council and at least one other minister’s muffled laughter. He stands up, sparks coming out of his fingertips, and then-

And then, the floor _moves_? Tanagi is launched into the air, and comes crashing down.

The laughter isn’t muffled anymore. It’s loud, and the majority of it is coming from Toph.

“The ground is metal!” he shouts. “What in the name of the Saints-”

Toph makes jazz hands. “Surprise, bitch,” she says- no, she _yells_. “I invented metalbending. Haven’t you heard?”

The floor moves again, and Minister Tanagi is shot through the conveniently open doors of the meeting chamber. 

“Next time, don’t insult my personal heater!” Toph yells, and the doors come to a crunching shut.

Okay, so. She’s not about to admit this to anyone, but Lani has had a crush on the Fire Lord since like, the day of his coronation. Yeah, she has no chance, since she’s the daughter of a guard, but like. She thinks he’s attractive, okay?

The pro to her dad working in the palace is that Lani picks up odd jobs to help out with all the time. And she doesn’t get to _see_ Zuko a lot, not _really_ , but it’s more than she would if she only ever went to school and worked her part time job at the new tea shop that opened in the city, right?

Today, Lani is running laundry back and forth, which is actually her least favorite job _ever_. She says that about every job, but this one in particular. It’s so boring! And the palace is so much bigger than you’d ever think it is. She’s exhausted, and she’s only been at work for an hour.

And then Lani sees that in her schedule, she’s supposed to wash Fire Lord Zuko’s clothes. She isn’t creepy, honest. But if she’s literally being told to go into his room for her job, well. She’s not going to complain about it, you know?

So she makes her way through the yard, because Lani has always loved being outside more than being in the oppressive halls of the palace. And the palace yards are _beautiful_. There are fountains, and ponds, and lovely places to walk and to sit down and read a book. There are trees that grow tall and lilypads in the water. Lani is incredibly jealous.

She passes the turtleduck pond, and as she leans down to toss a piece of bread that she brought for just this occasion into the water, and then she sees him.

Well, technically, she sees _them_ , because Zuko isn’t alone. There’s some boy with him, on the other side of the pond. Lani is in the bushes and it’s not like Zuko is watching, so she’s in no danger of being spotted. She throws her bread into the water and the turtleduck quacks as a thank you. She listens. Yeah, yeah, that’s probably super bad and morally wrong, but whatever. Her crush is just that- a crush, and it’s not like there’s any way for her to talk to the guy. No harm done in just eavesdropping on a conversation.

“Katara came by last week, yeah?” the guy next to Zuko asks. He’s wearing a blue tank top and he has a little ponytail that honestly is kind of cute. Fuck it. Lani thinks the guy is attractive.

Wait, Katara? Like, the waterbending master Katara? “Yeah, she did,” Zuko says. “She’s really good at talking to people, you know. I thought you’re supposed to be the diplomat.”

“I am the diplomat!” the guy says, affronted, and punches Zuko lightly in the arm. “I declare war. Water Tribe versus Fire Nation.”

“Might be a little too soon for that joke,” Zuko points out, but they both laugh. Zuko is sitting cross legged on the pavement but the other dude has his pants rolled up and his legs in the pond. The turtleducks surround him. “I think they like you,” Zuko says.

“Well, of course,” he replies, “everyone likes me. I’m a delight.”

Zuko makes a face. “You sure about that, Sokka?”

The guy- Sokka- throws his hands up in indignation, splashing water on Zuko in a way that seems to be an accident but judging from the look on his face probably isn’t. Zuko splutters and Sokka laughs at him. He throws more bread crumbs into the water. “You’re in no position to say that I’m not a delight, _Fire Lord Zuko_ ,” Sokka says cheerfully.

Zuko rolls his eyes. “I guess I’m not.”

Sokka takes Zuko’s hand and laces their fingers together. They both are smiling.

Lani… well, she actively wishes for death.

Of _course_ he’s taken. She never gets anything!

She quietly moves from the pond and makes her way back into the palace, leaving the two guys to feed the turtleducks or whatever. Apparently that’s the peak of romance. She isn’t going to say anything about it, obviously, she’s not an asshole, but Agni, this is _so_ unfair.

Whatever. Lani’s only sixteen and she knows it’s not the end of the world. She heads to Fire Lord Zuko’s room to get his laundry.

Seriously, though. Someone from the Water Tribe? Ugh.

**Author's Note:**

> cut scene  
> aang: i can't believe you said "we have work to do"  
> zuko: we do!  
> aang: the work is just talking about katara and sokka  
> zuko: i don't see what the problem is  
> aang: that's not real work zuko  
> zuko: well i disagree. our weekly discussions about the water tribe siblings are important  
> aang: how are you the leader of a nation


End file.
